If teachers represent a child's most important asset, they also can be a child's greatest liability, especially in states where a shortage of well-qualified teachers impedes the academic progress of African American students in learning contexts. The author asserts that a transformation in practices must occur in teacher education programs if…

Restructuring schools in urban settings requires a commitment to establishing and evaluating equity and excellence. Beliefs and values about schooling and the interests of all students should be made explicit and examined by educators in an attitude of critical inquiry. (CJS)

It is asserted that conventional school finance analysis must address itself to the social realities of politics and dealing with state legislatures, thus disputing some of the theses offered by Daniel C. Morgan in a previous article. (EH)

The effectiveness of education as an intervention strategy for the upward mobility of poor and minority group children is examined. It is hypothesized that if the general education intervention strategy is not successful, then the full potential of bilingual programs will not be realized. (Author/GC)

A study was conducted to examine how a broad combination of federal education programs (in operation in 1981-82) affected states' administration of federal and related state programs. Results did not confirm assessments of federal education programs as administratively burdensome and excessively restrictive at the state level. (Author/GC)

Examines how current legal trends and policies shape the efforts of educators in urban schools serving the multicultural communities where immigrant families reside. Relevant laws and policies are reviewed, as well as the strategies educators use to meet the needs of immigrant children, including access to schools and programs, assessment and…

Americans have always been ambivalent about public education, and this ambivalence is manifested by a split view of education as a vehicle for egalitarian political education and a vehicle for economically differentiated training. In high schools, particularly, attendance is common (i.e., universal), but the education received is not. (CMG)

By 1985, California will have become the first Third World State in the continental United States; there is a critical need for changes in the pervasive ethnocentric pedagogy to make schools more responsive to the multicultural reality of student populations. (CMG)

Analyzes the fiscal implications of equal educational opportunity as they apply to the schools of New York City, by first placing the discussion in a national perspective and then turning to recent court decisions that have invalidated school finance systems as violations of the Fourteenth Amendment of the Constitution. (RJ)

Reviews progress made toward educating handicapped children in the United States under Public Law 94-142. Describes how proposals by the Reagan Administration to reduce Federal involvement in education would place a heavy burden on individual States and would erode recent gains in educational opportunity for the handicapped. (GC)

Introduces a collection of articles on accountability, testing, and academics in schools with minority group and low-income students. The articles share the common viewpoint that there have been, and will continue to be mixed effects of accountability on educational equity in schools and districts. (SM)

Presents an urban practitioner's reaction to arguments about the positive effects of accountability policy on improving educational equity for minority and low income students. Recounts the Houston Independent School District's experiences with accountability and suggests that high levels of learning for all students has become the new civil…

Reviews the literature on the political context of school desegregation, including: the effect of federal involvement, the impact of policy on equitable opportunities for urban children; school reform and school achievement; and equity and accountability. Addresses the compatibility of educational improvement strategies and achievement in the…

Reviews the research on magnet schools and their impact on reducing racial segregation. Presents findings from a 3-year study of magnet schools in two urban districts. Surveys of diverse parents and teachers indicated that both groups generally believed the goal of integration was worth the cost of busing. Discusses the issue of racial balance in…